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RV-8 Joe Gepner

JoeGepner

Member
Hi Guys,

Well, I started my RV adventure over again. Last September I purchased a second hand RV-7 tail kit and built the two stabs and the rudder. Things were going really well and I was having a lot of fun banging rivets.

Then I got crazy. I packed my family up and moved out to a 10 acre farm in the country. My plan was to fly something low and slow off my pasture so I sold my RV7 kit to someone here at work. Turns out landing at the farm was just too tight, so I ordered a brand new RV kit from Vans. This time though, I just couldn't resist the RV8. :)

Finally got the shop in order and all the tools unpacked last night. My new shop is much bigger which is nice, but the biggest improvement is the beer fridge...
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Went to town on the vertical stab. Building my second one sure does seem easier than it was the first time around.
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I'll try to post updates from time to time. My wife told me I should build more and blog less. Can't argue with the boss!
 
That's really nice!

You even have lots of lighting and I'm sure H & AC - things we don't have in the hangars here! (We do have a beer fridg. though :D)

Way to go, Joe! Enjoy the process!
 
Given you have a "beer 'fridge" I guess my initial interpretation of Doug's front page title was not wrong ...

"Joe Gepner Sets the Shop Bar High!"
 
At least you guys don't have to sit here like I do and listen to him talk all day about how spacious and well-equipped his air-conditioned workshop is! ;)

mcb
 
Great shop Joe! Speaking of your pasture you say it's too tight. You have a lot of acreage could you clear a strip at least 1,200'?
 
Vlad, I could have just barely squeezed a 1000ft strip on the edge of my farm.

I think a dedicated STOL airplane could handle operating out of there in a regular basis. I was looking at a few of these birds like the Rans S-20, the Just Aircraft SuperSTOL, and the Cubcrafters CarbonCub.

I was actually fortunate enough to ride in a CarbonCub, and I'm not going to lie, it was pretty awesome. Those things can take off and land on a postage stamp if the pilot knows how to handle the aircraft properly. Now when it comes to flying cross country...they are...well...a little velocity challenged.....

For me though, it came down to how much bang you get for your buck. Those airplanes can cost as much or even more than an RV. I love the aluminum construction of the RVs, and you just can't beat an RV when it comes to "total performance".

RVs really can do everything and they are actually affordable to build. Plus, how could anyone build any type of airplane without the help of VAF?! :)
 
Vertical and Horizontal Stabs Ready to Fly!

Finished up the two stabilizers for my RV8. The new doublers in the Hstab were a little confusing for me, but I managed to figure everything out.

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Next up, rudder time!
 
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